Melbourne scientists find significant levels of polyphenols in Tamu’s Five10FIBRE
Singapore – Scientists at Melbourne University have confirmed the presence of a significant quantity of polyphenolic compounds including flavonoids in the sugar cane fibre used in Tamu Group’s Five10FIBRE. Polyphenols are a complex group of micronutrients that are widely distributed throughout the plant kingdom and thus form an integral part of the human diet. They are responsible for a wide range of health benefits, including the treatment of digestion issues, weight management and diabetes.
The research was led by Dr Ken Ng, Senior Lecturer in Food Chemistry, at the School of Agriculture & Food in the Faculty of Veterinary & Agricultural Sciences. The team also measured the impact of a range of processing conditions on the amount of polyphenols which they plan to publish later this year. This research results will be used to enhance Five10FIBRE with the best product quality that is consistent with its natural state.
Further results showed the potential for the polyphenols in Five10FIBRE to inhibit starch and fats digestive enzyme activity in a similar manner to current prescription a-glucosidase and lipase inhibitors used for the management of diabetes.
Dr Ng commented, “This is the first step in a very exciting collaborative research journey which can open the doorway to a number of high-value pharmaceutical applications for Five10FIBRE.”
These results are further to the new food and nutrition labelling regulations which the U.S Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced which places sugar cane fibre on the list of approved dietary fibres. The FDA ruled that mixed plant cell wall fibres (a category that includes sugar cane fibre and apple fibre) also met its fibre definition. This means that the Tamu Group’s Five10FIBRE will continue to appear as dietary fibre on the Nutritional Information Panel.
